Deshengda's 550 Million Yuan Cross-Border Investment in Semiconductors: Behind the Doubts

Question: Does the phenomenon of stock prices hitting the daily limit in advance of AI-related news suggest information asymmetry risks?

On March 18, the stock of Dashengda (603687) hit the daily limit at the close. That evening, the company disclosed plans to acquire a 22.9831% stake in Guochao GPU company CoreTong Semiconductor Technology (Xiamen) Co., Ltd. (“CoreTong Semiconductor”) for 550 million yuan. On March 19, the stock again hit the daily limit, achieving a “two-day streak.” Since this investment involves cross-industry expansion, Dashengda’s capital move has attracted significant market attention. Looking closely at this cross-industry investment, there are several doubts: besides Dashengda’s stock price “rushing ahead,” the valuation of the target company’s equity also varies. Additionally, although the final holding is less than 23%, the agreement grants the listed company a prominent veto right. In response to these issues, Dashengda told Beijing Business Daily on March 19 that the company is currently in a sensitive period for its stock price, and specific details will be disclosed in official announcements.

Stock Price Hitting Limit in Advance

The phenomenon of secondary market stock prices hitting the limit in advance has reoccurred, with Dashengda as the main actor this time.

On the evening of March 18, Dashengda announced that it plans to invest a total of 550 million yuan through equity transfer and capital increase to acquire a 22.9831% stake in CoreTong Semiconductor after the transaction. Notably, on the day the investment was announced, Dashengda’s stock price “rushed ahead.” Market data shows that on March 18, the stock opened slightly lower, then fluctuated upward, and under multiple buy orders, hit the daily limit, closing at 11.06 yuan per share.

On March 19, Dashengda’s stock continued to hit the limit, closing at 12.17 yuan per share, with a total market value of 6.694 billion yuan.

It is understood that CoreTong Semiconductor was founded in 2019 and is a pioneer in China focused on designing, developing, and selling general-purpose high-performance graphics processing chips. On March 13, its official website stated that the TokenClaw super AI system is a private super AI infrastructure launched for enterprises, and TokenLake combined with OpenClaw can create an internal closed-loop shrimp farming ecosystem.

Specifically, regarding equity transfer, Dashengda plans to pay 27.86 million yuan to acquire 2.7074% of CoreTong Semiconductor’s equity before this capital increase, and 22.14 million yuan to acquire 1.5961% of the equity from Qiming Equity Investment.

For the capital increase, the company plans to invest 500 million yuan in CoreTong Semiconductor in two phases. The first phase involves a 250 million yuan increase upon meeting certain conditions; the second phase, also 250 million yuan, will occur after the first phase and upon successful pilot production of the third-generation graphics processor. Meanwhile, Dashengda’s controlling shareholder, Xinshengda, plans to invest 50 million yuan at the same terms to acquire a 1.9608% stake in CoreTong Semiconductor after the transaction.

It should be noted that after Dashengda disclosed this news, the Shanghai Stock Exchange promptly issued a regulatory letter concerning “Zhejiang Dashengda Packaging Co., Ltd.'s external investment and agreement transfer matters,” involving the listed company, directors, supervisors, senior management, controlling shareholders, and actual controllers.

Valuation Discrepancies

Interestingly, although the equity transfer and capital increase are conducted simultaneously, the valuations differ.

The announcement shows that, based on pricing methods, the pre-investment valuation of CoreTong Semiconductor for the capital increase is 2 billion yuan; for the equity transfer, the valuation is 1.16 billion yuan.

Regarding the valuation gap between the capital increase and equity transfer, angel investor and senior AI expert Guo Tao told Beijing Business Daily that the core reasons are threefold: First, the different stages of the transaction—transferring old shares relates to the early development stage of the target, with limited business scale and technological maturity, so the valuation is naturally lower; the capital increase is based on the current business progress and market expectations, thus giving a higher valuation. Second, the risk and reward logic differ—old share transfer reflects past operational results with fixed risks and no future growth premium, while the capital increase is an investment in future development, carrying a “growth premium.” Third, the different demands of transaction counterparts—sellers of old shares (such as funds) may prefer lower valuations for liquidity needs, while the company seeking capital aims for higher valuations to raise funds and increase market attention.

Dashengda stated that since it does not acquire control of the target company, this is a cautious strategic decision, mainly to establish strategic cooperation and share growth benefits at a lower cost, avoiding the risks associated with controlling stake acquisitions and cross-industry integration.

Additionally, on the evening of March 18, Dashengda announced that Xinshengda plans to transfer 44.0026 million shares (8% of the total) to Hechuang Xinrong at 9.954 yuan per share, totaling 4.38 billion yuan.

The announcement states that this share transfer is contingent upon the formal investment agreement (including but not limited to capital increase and old share transfer) between Dashengda and CoreTong Semiconductor taking effect. If the investment does not succeed, the share transfer will be terminated.

It is noteworthy that Hechuang Xinrong is a newly established company, founded on January 27, 2026, with shareholders being individuals with extensive business experience and strong financial resources.

Dashengda said that the transferees and all related parties are unrelated. This move aims to enable resource synergy, leveraging Hechuang Xinrong’s industry resources to support the invested company with technology, supply chain, or market channels, maximizing the expected benefits of this external investment. It also aims to optimize the equity structure, reduce the controlling shareholder’s stake to improve decision-making, and introduce Hechuang Xinrong as a strategic, professional investor to enhance overall strategic decision quality.

“Prominent” Veto Rights

Although Dashengda did not gain control of the target, its veto rights are quite “eye-catching.”

The announcement states that to safeguard the interests of the listed company, the investment agreement grants Dashengda a seat on the board and a one-vote veto right on major matters, along with performance commitments, share buybacks, anti-dilution clauses, and other protective provisions to ensure investment safety and synergy.

Financial commentator Zhang Xuefeng told Beijing Business Daily that whether such protective clauses, including veto rights, are “reasonable” when the investor does not hold control depends not only on the shareholding ratio but also on factors like the investment amount, strategic importance, development stage of the target, and governance structure. The purpose is to balance investment risks, protect core rights, and maintain a certain balance between management autonomy and safeguarding investor interests.

Dashengda mainly engages in R&D, production, printing, and sales of paper packaging products, including corrugated boxes, cardboard, high-end wine packaging, premium cigarette packs, and biodegradable paper pulp tableware. From its fundamentals, Dashengda’s performance in 2024 and the first three quarters of 2025 looks optimistic.

Financial data shows that in 2023–2024, Dashengda achieved revenues of approximately 2.014 billion and 2.131 billion yuan, respectively, with net profits attributable to shareholders of about 88.55 million and 106 million yuan. In the first three quarters of 2025, revenue was about 1.587 billion yuan (up 5.15%), with net profit attributable to shareholders around 90.92 million yuan (up 9.92%).

In contrast, the target company, CoreTong Semiconductor, has not yet turned a profit.

In 2024 and 2025, CoreTong Semiconductor is expected to generate revenues of approximately 27.45 million and 50.78 million yuan, respectively, with net losses of about 107 million and 48.99 million yuan (2025 data unaudited).

However, most domestic GPU companies are currently unprofitable.

The announcement also states that CoreTong Semiconductor is still in its growth phase, not yet profitable, requiring ongoing R&D and market expansion. Given the rapid iteration of graphics processor technology, if the company cannot accurately grasp technological and market changes, it risks losing competitiveness, facing short-term profitability difficulties or performance volatility, and a longer investment return cycle with potentially lower-than-expected gains.

Beijing Business Daily reporter Wang Manlei